[SOLVED] Need help troubleshooting computer
Solution
It was probably my motherboard. I got a new CPU and motherboard and it worked. I also upgraded from DDR3 to DDR4 ram in the upgrade process
Background
So my computer is not posting, and I am unsure the cause. I am not getting an error code, so that complicates things. I do not know if this motherboard will provide post codes, it does not have a seven segment display for providing post codes.
How it started
It just randomly stopped displaying any pictures, unsure if it happened while in use or when the computer was asleep. I was doing stuff at my desk and had music playing on my computer. The music ended and I did not put on more music and the monitors went to sleep. Later when I went to use my computer It did not appear to wake up, I tried fully shutting down and turning on my computer, and that is when this problem occurred.
Symptoms:
- When I power on, computer appears to start normally, with all fans spinning so power delivery appears to be working. Even GPU fans are spinning.
- Holding down the power button turns the computer off as normal.
- Nothing is displayed on the screen, my monitors do not even detect an input.
- USB devices do not appear to be powering on.
- Every minute or two, the GPU fans ramp up briefly, and then ramp down. It may be all fans are ramping up, kind of hard to tell exactly which fans are ramping up.
- With the AMD GPU, the LEDs for power turn on. However, I vaguely recall the GPU itself having some RGB when the system was running that was not on. How my computer was setup I did not see inside my case that often, so the RGB on the GPU is a vague memory from a few years ago and I would not put much weight in there being some RGB.
Hardware:
- MOBO: Gigabyte 9900FXA-UD3
- CPU: AMD FX-8350
- GPU: ASUS Radeon HD7870 or EVGA GTX 970
- PSU: Cooler Master Elite V2 550W
Troubleshooting Attempted:
I initially assumed it was GPU related as the computer appears to turn on normally, but then nothing is displayed. So another user shipped me his old GPU (the GTX 970), and I swapped it out with my old one, and the problem persists.
I tried swapping out the RAM
I tried a brand new PSU and that also did not solve the issue
Leading hypothesis
Since I have changed everything out except CPU and MOBO, I am thinking it is probably my MOBO. I am currently researching my options for replacing my MOBO, or a friend offered me his CPU and RAM from his old rig with a broken MOBO that may be a better option than replacing mine.
Can you unseat the RAM sticks, and try them one by one? This smells like a RAM issue.
I tried that with no luck. Unless it took out all my RAM at once. I have a desktop that I run as a server that I can check with that RAM once I verify that all the ram on that machine is working
Edit: tried it with the RAM from my other computer and still no luck
Did you ever figure out the issue, @IsildursBane? Was it the mobo?
I did. I edited the post at the top with the solution once I had it figured out. I replaced the CPU and mobo since the CPU was old enough it wasn't worth just replacing the mobo. That also involved switching from my DDR3 to DDR4 RAM so that was also replaced at the same time. Too many switches to definitively say it was the mobo, but it probably was
Ah, ok. I didn't notice your edit. I have now edited the title to include "[SOLVED]" and added a solved tag to the topic as well.
p.s. Glad you figured it out. ;)
Sounds like either a power supply or main board at this point. If you have another power supply you can try swapping it. I'm guessing you'll want something at least 500W with that CPU and graphics card.
You can also try clearing the CMOS - Unplug the power. Push the power button to discharge capacitors in the power supply. Remove the CMOS battery and bridge the 2 battery contacts with a screw driver or something metal. There is also usually a jumper or button but I usually do the battery method. Most of the time a Minute is sufficient, but one time I had success trying it a second time and leaving the battery out and unplugged over night.
I second trying to swap out to a new PSU especially because OP states "fans turn on" which are typically on the 12V rail, while "USB devices do not turn on" which are on the 5V rail, so sounds like it could be an issue with the 5V. Almost any non-nominal voltage will result in a motherboard refusing to boot
That is useful information. With the fans spinning I was less suspicious of it being PSU related. But now that you mention 5v vs 12v, I will definitely look into that. I have been taught how to back probe a PSU with a multimeter, so I will do that tonight before running out and buying a PSU tomorrow.
Edit: I looked into my voltages, and they all seem to roughly be working well with slight margins of errors. Of course, checking the voltage does not fully factor in current, so I may try and run out and buy a new PSU this evening
It was not the PSU, I just bought a new one and it did not solve it
I hate to say it, but it seems like you've eliminated everything except the mainboard as a potential problem. Do you have any system fans plugged directly into the mainboard? Are there any lights? The most common thing to go on a mainboard is a capacitor, so it's a bit surprising that it would be the mainboard while fans and/or lights are still working. I've only ever had a couple of mainboards ever fail on me though, so my sample size is pretty small.
Yeah, that seems to be where I am at now
Another vote for investigating the PSU. I had 2 of them die on me in the span of a year (both old, so NBD) and can say from experience that they can cause systemwide weirdness when they are dying. On one PC it would randomly reboot when I was playing a game, and the other did something similar to what OP is describing.
That is useful information. I think swapping out the PSU would be a useful first step.
If you have a spare it may be worth swapping the monitor to rule out peripheral hardware.
I have been using my wife's laptop and plugging it in to my monitor and keyboard and mouse. So all of that is working
It looks like that mobo might have multiple possible slots for the GPU - when you swapped to the other GPU did you try it in the same slot or in one of the other slots?
My guess (since you said RAM is seated properly), is that it could be an issue with the PCIE slot for the GPU - since you tried an alt. GPU.
I would also try detaching all peripherals and turning it on once too.
I tried it in the same slot. I have also tried turning it on with no peripherals except a display connected
I would try maybe a different slot then, if I was seeing the Mobo manual correctly that there is another possible GPU slot.
Hopefully you can find something that works if that suggestion doesn’t!
There is a second slot, so you are correct on that. I am going to try PSU first, as others have mentioned potential problems with it being PSU, and that seems more likely than the PCIE slot breaking
FWIW I had a similar set of symptoms a couple of years ago. I swapped every component I easily could (PSU, RAM, GPU), no change. Reseated every connection and component. Ended up replacing the motherboard and was back in business. I didn't see any obvious physical problems with the board components, but something must've failed.
Yeah, I am starting to realize that after doing a lot of troubleshooting today that it is probably my MOBO
Have you tried resetting the bios on the mobo by taking out the battery and toggling the jumper? (or whatever the procedure is for your model)
I had an identical issue as you did, and I concluded it's 50-50 between the PSU or the motherboard. I changed the PSU, no luck. I changed the motherboard and that fixed it.
Maybe there's a PSU you can borrow from someone, so you don't end up buying unnecessary components like I did.
Yeah, I bought a new PSU and no luck. I think it is the motherboard
Oh no! I have no advice to give, but I'm right there with you on computer issues. Mine has been randomly throttling the cpu and saying a fan isn't functioning, but it seems to run fine sometimes for hours and doesn't overheat. I just updated my BIOS but it hasn't fixed it. This laptop is only a year old, so it's really frustrating. :(
Out of curiosity, can you verify your old GPU still works correctly? As in, does it still work correctly in a working computer?
I do not have the ability to verify that either GPU works
Does your motherboard have a PC speaker plugged into the mobo? Does it beep when it powers on?
What happens if you take out the ram and try to boot without it? It should beep continuously.
If it does have a speaker and it doesn't beep without RAM I'd lean towards it being the motherboard. Possibly power supply or CPU, but CPU is pretty unlikely.
The motherboard does not seem to have a speaker. It appears that this motherboard does not have a way of communicating post codes which is frustrating
You can actually buy those little speakers, they're cheap. Mobo manual should show you where to install it
I may have to do that since a new PSU did not solve it. This issue is turning out to be quite frustrating
Any computer shop that builds PCs should have a bunch of those speakers laying around and would probably give you one free.